


Undercover

by theonewhohums



Category: Soul Eater
Genre: Ballroom Dancing, F/M, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Pining, Romance, Undercover
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-06
Updated: 2016-12-06
Packaged: 2018-09-06 23:13:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,710
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8773213
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/theonewhohums/pseuds/theonewhohums
Summary: Pretending to be a couple for a mission would be a lot easier if dancing wasn't involved. Or meisters in tight velvet dresses.





	

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer: I know literally nothing about ballroom dancing and after watching a bunch of tutorials I still know nothing. So beware that the form in this is probably incorrect.
> 
> ...Oh. And I don't own Soul Eater. That too.

"I don't know, Maka. Undercover isn't really our style. Can't we just spring on 'em like we normally do?"

He could hear Maka's muffled voice from the fitting room to his left. He assumed that her dress was still stuck over her head. "You heard Kid, Soul," there was a frustrated grunt, and then her voice got much clearer as he heard more rustling of fabric. She let out a deep breath. "It's a dance competition for couples. All we have to is get past the preliminary round and then we're allowed backstage access to the main competition. That's where our guy will be."

He straightened his tie in the mirror. "I guess I'm just not seeing why we have to be _in_ the competition to nab this guy."

"Well we don't want him dining on the souls of one of the contestants, do we? It's our job to protect these people. And the best way to do that is to go undercover."

Soul grimaced in the mirror. The blood red shirt and black tie reminded him too much of the Black Room, the last place he and his partner had danced. It was years ago, and the demon had long since been a problem in his life, but the memory still stung. "It just had to be dancing, didn't it?" he muttered to himself.

"Did you say something?" he heard Maka ask from just outside his fitting room. The sound of her hand against the door made a slight creak, but she hesitated before pushing it open. "Hey, could you help zip me up? This dress is impossible to put on alone."

He turned away from the mirror with a shake of his head and opened the door, to be greeted with the sight of his meister's bare back facing him. The form-fitting red dress was unzipped all the way to her lower back, leaving Soul with the gorgeous view of his meister's pale skin, and the lacey black bra she was wearing. Maka stood patiently with her blonde hair swept aside with one hand. Swallowing thickly, Soul delicately placed his left hand on his partner's shoulder to steady her as he slowly dragged the zipper up the center of her back.

"Thanks," she said cheerily as she stepped away from him. She turned around and let go of her hair, allowing it to fall in loose curls around her shoulders. "So how do I look?"

It was hard to articulate. Liz picked a stunning dress for Maka: a deep red velvet dress that clung tightly to her body, accenting her curves and contrasting her fair skin perfectly. Soul's eyes trailed lazily down Maka's body, taking in her bare shoulders, slim figure, and the dangerously high slit on her dress. His gaze fell on the long leg that was visible through the separation of fabric, and for moment forgot the question Maka had asked him.

Soul blinked hard. "You look great," he said, awkwardly clearing his throat and turning away from her to focus on his own reflection once more.

"You do too," Maka responded with a smile. Soul couldn't help but wonder if she meant that or if she was just returning a compliment. The cool guy within him tried to convince him it didn't matter.

She joined him in the fitting room, standing beside him and winding her arm casually around his waist as she looked at them in the mirror. While Soul should have been used to the close proximity with his meister by now, his heart still began to beat a little faster at the contact.

"We make a pretty good looking couple, don't we?"

Why did she have to say stuff like that? Soul knew that she was referring to their clothes, because yes, they did look damn good in their dance attire—but that's not what he wanted her to mean. Not by a long shot. He'd been repressing it for years, but was finally coming to terms with the fact that he wanted his meister as more than a partner. It was too bad that he was still afraid to admit that out loud.

He carefully disentangled himself from her and stepped away.

"Yeah, but will we make convincing dance partners? Maka, I don't think I need to tell you this, but you're not the best dancer."

She put her hands on her hips and pouted. "I am too! I've gotten a lot better over the years! And I took those lessons a few months ago with Tsubaki at the rec center, so it's not like I don't know anything."

Soul ran his hands through his hair. "I just don't know if a couple sessions of 'Flirty Girl Fitness' or whatever will be enough to get passed the prelims of this competition."

"Flirty Girl—?" Maka's face settled into a scowl. "Fine. I'll prove it to you."

And suddenly she was grabbing him by the hand and pulling him towards her. Their bodies collided and before Soul could right himself Maka was grabbing him by the other hand and settling it on her hip.

" _What the_ —? Could you warn a person before you assault them?"

Maka looked him in the eyes. "Lead me."

"What?"

She rolled her eyes, still looking miffed. "You heard me. Lead me. Just a typical waltz. I won't step on your toes or slow you down or anything. I'll show you how well my _ballroom dance lessons_ went."

Soul sighed. "If you insist."

Against his wishes to keep his hand where it was, he slid it up her body until it was resting on her left shoulder blade, supporting her right arm at the proper angle. He held his right hand out slightly above shoulder height and patiently waited for her to press her palm into his. She did, eyes on his and jaw set in determination. It was the face she made when she was preparing her mind for battle, and when her hand rested in his, he had to shut down his instinct to transform into a scythe. This was a dance, not a fight.

He began, stepping forward with his left foot and noting how Maka's right foot was gliding back effortlessly, no toes to be stepped on. He continued the dance, his right foot moving diagonally into a basic box step and Maka's movements mirroring his own. A glance from the corner of his eye told him that even her head was facing the right way, glancing just over his shoulder and never at their feet, completely trusting that he would never step on her or lead her astray. Funny, dancing with Maka was a lot like being her weapon. Even when angry they still trusted each other completely and relied one another to be there in case the other faltered.

Despite the slightly uncomfortable form (he's was unused to maintaining such impeccable posture for long periods of time), doing the waltz with Maka felt so very right. He could feel the warmth of her body from being so close to her, and holding her in his arms was a pleasant change of pace from the opposite way things normally were. He held her in such a way that he felt like the frame of an effortlessly beautiful picture, and as they danced in front of their fitting rooms he found himself glancing down often to catch glimpses of their bodies moving in sync with one another. His legs and hers were perfect mirrors of one another, save for the lack of fabric covering Maka's long slim leg.

He gazed at Maka's leg as it escaped the confines of her dress through the tall slit when suddenly Maka's hand left his shoulder and tilted his chin up until he was gazing into her eyes.

"You're looking down, Soul," she said with a small smile. "Your form is off."

"Sorry," he said hazily, shaking his head. "Got distracted."

But the dance didn't end there. Once his eyes caught hers he couldn't take them off of her. The haughty grin on her lips had melted into a natural smile, and while he could tell she was concentrating to avoid making a mistake, it seemed she couldn't keep her eyes off of him either. They continued to waltz, remaining light on their feet as they danced, and Soul even took it upon himself to spin her twice, noting with pride that his meister's footwork never faltered during the more difficult move. Her heated gaze was making him brave, and before he was even aware of his own movements he was repositioning his hands and leaning her into a dip much too deep for the waltz.

Maka hung there, suspended above ground but fully supported by his arms, facing him with a look he had never seen on her before, or at least never directed at him. It was a blaze of emerald green and bated breath, her fingers curling into the fabric of his shirt and her lips parted ever so slightly.

Passion, that's what it was, and it was all Soul needed to finally do it. He took the plunge, literally and figuratively, leaning his head in and watching as her chin tilted up to meet him halfway. He was close enough that he could feel her breath on his lips when Liz walked into the changing area and jumped in surprise.

"Whoa! What are you guys doing?"

The interruption seemed to break the spell over both of them. Soul immediately righted himself, pulling Maka up into a standing position before literally pushing her away from him, not look responding to Liz until she was at least an arm's length away from him

"Uhhh, we were just practicing for the competition."

Liz arched a perfectly plucked brow and looked at the space between the two of them and the blushes that must have been blooming on both of their faces. "Uh huh…Well save the mushy stuff for when you're in front of the other contestants. They're the ones who need to be fooled here, got it?"

Soul and Maka nodded stoically, waiting for Liz to leave before finally stealing glances at one another. Something told Soul that making their performance believable wouldn't be so difficult anymore.

**Author's Note:**

> (Originally published 3/10/15)


End file.
